Friends Past Reunited (partially found full version of choir sample from "The Caretaker" song; 1950s-1970s)
The Caretaker's "Stairway To The Stars" studio album cover.
Status: Partially Found
The Friends Past Reunited choir sample refers to a recording of an unknown piece from an unknown choir that was sampled by The Caretaker (Leyland Kirby) in various albums on his discography, though it is most notably used in his song "Friends Past Reunited" from the 2002 album, "A Stairway to the Stars" (hence, had the placeholder name as the "Friends Past Reunited" choir sample). Several other tracks from the recording can be seen throughout The Caretaker's discography, most famously in the finale of The Caretaker's magnum opus, "Everywhere At The End Of Time".
The record itself is known to be pressed by Eroica Recording Services Ltd., a company that made private recordings in England in the 50s and 60s. Due to how and when it was recorded, the recording has become very rare, and records pressed by Eroica have been seen as highly valuable to some record collectors as far back as the 90s[1].
It was known to have been purchased from a record store known as The 78 Record Exchange, a now-closed record store where Kirby sourced many records for which he used in his music under the Caretaker moniker. Another notable lost record was also purchased from the same store. Dubbed the 'organ record', it is also used throughout The Caretaker's discography, and is sampled in full in the album "Deleted Scenes / Forgotten Dreams", similar to the St. Luke Passion recording. The organ record, unlike the record listed here, contains several songs by different composers, however, most of them tend to follow one piece (i.e. Sea Pieces by Edward MacDowell, Suite Gothique by Leon Boellman)
Availability
Only 50-60 copies on vinyl were made for the members of the choir and conductor. Leyland Kirby was able to find two copies of it in a shop in the 1990s though he has not released them publicly, and the rest of the copies are "impossible to find".[2] Also, the choir/church in the recording is unknown.
False Identifications
The melody to the ending of Friends Past Reunited has been falsely identified as "Lord, Let Me Know Mine End" by singer Maurice Greene,[3] and was thought to be a recording by the Lichfield Cathedral Choir.
Another false identification is the Milford Parish Church recording of St. Luke Passion from April 8, 1966. Although there are many similarities between the two recordings, they are not from the same church, or the same recording company. Although the original recording still remains at large, the Milford Parish recording is the closest thing available.
The record was also at one point incorrectly assumed to be performed by the Guildford Cathedral Choir. This lead was supported by similar personnel in the Guildford and Milford choir, however, it was closed mid-2022 as it was proven the Guildford Cathedral did not have the Passion in its repertoire.
As of 2023, the full recording has not resurfaced.
Gallery
His Praises Sound, by Lichfield Cathedral Choir 1966
Leyland Kirby confirming the record label in an email from January 2021
References
- ↑ Google Docs that contains information on Eroic Recording Services Ltd., by The Caretaker Discord Community. Compiled by the following: G809, Ippy, Ja’Keel Jyba, Mr Mister, & Personman - Retrieved 28 Dec '23
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCiAqZlsTdI
Note: The video has been deleted and unarchived, but by the point of time of this article's writing, the reference listed is valid. - ↑ Falsely identified piece/recording.